“Nobody in Singapore drinks Singapore Slings. It’s one of the first things you find out there. What you do in Singapore is eat. It’s a really food-crazy culture.”
If you’re going to listen to anyone’s take on eating somewhere, it’s Anthony Bourdain. The greatly-missed writer and chef was a big fan of the southeast Asian city state, thanks mainly to its kaleidoscopic food landscape, where flavours, techniques, ingredients and personalities combine to dazzling effect.
First up on your visit, where to stay? You’re seriously spoilt for choice on the hotel front. If you’re keen to stay in the heart of the city, then Grand Hyatt Singapore has just undergone a sparking top-to-toe makeover. Nab a Garden Room and you’ll get spacious villa feels just yards from the huge pool and seconds from the lobby. If you’re after more of a tropical resort experience, then the seriously plush Capella Singapore sits on Sentosa Island, known for its beaches, entertainment complexes, golf courses and jungle-covered hills overlooking the ship-filled Singapore Strait towards Indonesia.
How plush is it? During her Eras Tour stop, Taylor Swift stayed in their jaw-dropping £11,000 per night three-bedroom villa. Private pools, sweeping gardens filled with peacocks and stellar bars and restaurants ensure that the resort is a seriously sought-after escape – but mere mortals can stay from around £550 per night.
Few cities are as visitor-friendly as Singapore, meaning that getting around is a breeze. Spotless air-conditioned public transport provides respite from the constant heat and humidity wherever you head, but if you want an Uber-style car service just bear in mind that you’ll need to download an app called Grab.
One great way to see the city is in a Sidecar tour as you’re buzzed around by a vintage Vespa. You’ll reach parts of the city that others can’t, while some tours specialise in food stops, which is never a bad thing. Sights-wise, take your pick, or, as always, just wander, follow your nose and get happily, safely lost. A trippy experience at any time, but especially at night, is Gardens by The Bay where a Cloud Forest, Floral Dome and Supertree Observatory are just some of the experiences that celebrate the mind-blowing flora of the Malay Peninsula. It also sits next to the architectural icon of Marina Bay Sands, where three towers feature a vast underground mall and are topped by a huge infinity pool – although for our money it’s too crowded to be fun.
Elsewhere, hit up the atmospheric warren of lanes around Little India, while other highlights including wandering Chinatown where you shouldn’t miss the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple, home to a dental relic in a stupa crafted from 320 kg of gold. Pearl’s Hill Terrace is a creative arts complex just minutes away, while vintage stores and galleries abound. Unwind with a tropical cocktail – just not a Singapore Sling – atop the Rooftop Bar at 1939, an architectural pearl named for its year of construction.
Talking of drinks, take your pick. Clarke Quay and Boat Quay are worth a wander for waterside views and cityscape snaps but, given that they’re filled with tourists and some questionable quality drinks, your money is definitely best spent in other watering holes. Jigger & Pony, Nutmeg and Clove and Sago House are three of the most lauded, including by Asia’s 50 Best Bars, while Manhattan at the Conrad Singapore Orchard and Atlas Bar both feature interiors that seriously wow.
But, as Bourdain said, it’s really all about the food, so mix up street food and finer dining and you won’t go wrong. For local eats, Hawker Centres bring together dozens of humble but sensational culinary spots under one roof. From oyster omelettes to sambal seafood, smoky
satay to steamy noodles or chili crab to spicy laksa, there’s something for everyone at frankly astonishingly fair price points.
Lau Pa Sat is an iconic choice in the heart of the central business district, while Newton Food Centre was one of the settings for Crazy Rich Asians. Our advice however is to jump on the MRT (Singapore’s tube) and just follow your nose to food courts in far-flung housing estates where you’ll eat like a king or queen for around a tenner.
For finer dining, Singapore is a Michelin-starred and garlanded culinary wonderland. Odette serves some of the finest French cuisine outside of France, Burnt Ends does barbecue to blow your mind and Jaan by Kirk Westaway sees a British chef deliver fabulous tasting menus with views to match.
But for new spots, try Fysh from Australian chef Josh Niland at the sleek and sexy new Singapore Edition hotel, where his ‘scale to tail’ dining shows just how seafood can and should be used and celebrated. Think a maritime, modern take on St JOHN. The seriously pretty dining room is the stage for dishes like a swordfish curry puff with tamarind hot sauce and dry-aged yellowfin tuna tartare. Malaysian lobster with fishbone noodles is a signature, as the noodles are actually made from boiled down cod bones.
Hayop ni Manam on Amoy Street in the heart of Chinatown celebrates the fabulous and unsung flavours of the Philippines in dishes such as ‘midnight adobo’ featuring bone marrow, grass-fed NZ wagyu and an adobo sauce using 15 cloves of confit garlic. Don’t miss their outrageously tasty inasal na panga, where tuna jaw is marinated and charred in calamansi, ginger, lemongrass oil and much more.
The final new spot to check out is Le Pristine Singapore at The Grand Hyatt by Dutch chef Sergio Herman. In slightly moody and definitely atmospheric interiors – and to a killer playlist – he cleverly riffs on Singaporean flavours in his ‘Neo Italian’ cuisine, which uses produce from his home of Zeeland. His signature pizzette comes with Alaskan king crab and chilli to play on the beloved local favourite, while his seafood orecchiette, with mussels squid, sweet langoustines and nduja, is an absolute show-stopper.